Rep. Susie Lee Receives Champion Award for Work in Support of Community Health Care Centers
A photo of Rep. Lee receiving the award can be found here.
WASHINGTON – Today, Rep. Susie Lee announced that she received the Distinguished Community Health Champion Award from the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) for her advocacy for community health centers in Nevada and across the country. Rep. Lee was presented with the award while meeting with representatives from Nevada's community health centers in her Washington, D.C. office.
"Every Nevadan deserves access to quality, affordable health care – no matter their zip code or background," said Rep. Susie Lee. "Our community health centers are vital to providing that access for many families that would otherwise not have it. That's why I have fought tirelessly to help our community health centers get the federal investments they need. I'm honored to receive this recognition from an organization doing so much to keep families and communities healthy, especially amidst the COVID-19 pandemic."
"NACHC is pleased to present Congresswoman Susie Lee with the 2022 Distinguished Community Health Champion Award for sponsoring key legislation to support Community Health Centers and their patients," said Rachel Gonzales-Hanson, Interim President and CEO of the National Association for Community Health Centers. "Her desire to help working families gain access to health care is evident through her tireless efforts to expand high quality, comprehensive health care in medically underserved communities. Congresswoman Lee recently introduced the MOBILE Health Care Act which will allow health centers the funding flexibility to purchase, expand or acquire mobile health clinics that can travel to remote rural and hard-to-reach areas and provide much-needed primary care, behavioral health, preventive screenings, as well as COVID-19 testing and vaccinations. NACHC thanks Congresswoman Lee for her leadership and commitment to health centers and their patients."
"The Nevada Primary Care Association and our member Community Health Centers thank Representative Susie Lee for supporting our work to improve access to high quality health care for all Nevadans," said Nancy Bowen, CEO, Nevada Primary Care Association. "Rep. Lee has introduced bills that would greatly improve the health center model. The MOBILE Health Care Act will allow our health centers to acquire and sustain more mobile health facilities to reach patients lacking transportation or at great distances from existing services. The Improving Access to Health Care in Rural and Underserved Areas Act will allow our health centers to train and retain more providers in health centers and allow them to connect to the communities they serve."
Rep. Susie Lee has been a longtime advocate for Federally-Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs). Earlier this year, Rep. Lee introduced the bipartisan MOBILE Health Care Act. This bill would allow FQHCs to use New Access Point (NAP) grants for establishing mobile health units, building renovation, and acquisition and construction costs to increase access to affordable, quality health care in rural and underserved communities.
Just this week, Rep. Lee also introduced the Improving Access to Health Care in Rural and Underserved Areas Act to provide additional support for primary care providers in underserved communities. This bill would create a five-year pilot program that provides a funding opportunity for up to 100 FQHCs and Rural Health Clinics to boost capacity in specific areas of medical need within their communities, enhancing skills in these areas and expanding access to care.
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